


Should be the last night we're apart

by Lady_Ganesh



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Between Seasons/Series, M/M, Multi, Sex Magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-27
Updated: 2018-05-27
Packaged: 2019-05-14 07:28:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14765232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Ganesh/pseuds/Lady_Ganesh
Summary: Ben Kenobi is ready for a life in exile, but not before Luke and Leia are protected.He visits a former Guardian for help, but the task requires one more.





	Should be the last night we're apart

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Rubynye](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rubynye/gifts).



He'd left everything behind but the ship and his saber. Even his name. Obi-Wan had been Qui-Gonn's apprentice, Anakin's master, but those titles didn't suit him any more. They just underlined his failure. Ben was name enough, and disguise enough. The final insult was that as Jedi after Jedi fell, Obi-Wan stayed alive, not even important enough to hunt. Or perhaps spared by some perverse whim of Anakin or Palpatine, which was perhaps worse.

But an exile had no room for dignity or pride, and Ben didn’t have the time. Ben knew that both the children might be detected through the Force, once someone knew what to look for. Separating them would protect one, with luck, but not both, and not forever. Anakin was grievously wounded, but not dead. Ben couldn’t be sure if he knew Padme had given birth before her death, but if he had, he’d want his children.

They needed to be hidden, and hidden well. One in Alderaan, covered by the bustle of politics and snow-covered mountains. The other on Tatooine, the last place Anakin would want to revisit. But it might not be enough, if Anakin recovered to full strength. If Anakin's _master_ wanted to go hunting.

But Ben knew people who knew how to hide. The challenge was that they were hidden.

The Kyber Temple had fallen even before the Order, or so Ben had been told by an informant at Mos Eisley. There was no sense in looking in Jedha, which was controlled by the rising Empire. 

Perhaps he'd just have to trust the Force and hope for the best.

Whether the Force was with him, or whether the connections he'd made over the years just paid off, he'd never know, but he got a lead on Chirrut Îmwe from a Utapaun who had run deliveries to Jedha for years. 

 

Chirrut's robes were the same, his smile still serene and a bit too knowing, but it was jarring to see him as he was now, tucked in a corner of the marketplace, alone but for his begging bowl. He slid a coin in the bowl, and watched as Chirrut turned his unseeing eyes toward his face. "Thank you for your kindness," he said.

"This must not be an easy life."

"The Force sees that I am fed and sheltered," Chirrut said, easily. "I can want for little more than that."

"An optimistic way to see the world."

"I've been told as much." 

"I've been looking for somewhere safe to stay," he said. "I don't suppose you know--"

"There is an inn," he said. "The Starlight. It is kind to vagabonds and lost souls."

Ben booked a room, and waited.

 

"Kenobi," Chirrut said, when he finally arrived. 

"I am sorry to disturb your exile," Ben said.

Chirrut breezed past him, into the room. "Exiles are made for disturbance. And your room is big enough for two. You've saved me begging a room for the evening."

That wasn't what Ben had planned, but it was sensible enough. Sharing a room would give them enough time together and privacy to talk. "Would you like a meal as well? A bath?"

"I've eaten well today, but I'll let you buy me a bath." Chirrut shot a grin in Ben's direction. "As much for your sake as mine, I suspect."

"I can't say I'll complain, no."

"Give me the coin, I'll take care of it. It's best if we appear to be strangers, I think."

"I suspect you're right. Take your bath and get back here, in as much privacy as you can manage."

"Oh, don't worry," Chirrut said. "Enough disgraced Jedi have bought beggars for a night or two, no one will think much of that."

Ben opened his mouth to speak, but Chirrut had already glided from the room.

He went down and paid for a meal--his remaining savings wouldn't last forever, but they at least covered this trip--and ate alone, eyeing his fellow travelers, trying not to miss the days when his Jedi robes would have brought him reverence instead of pity.

He felt his life separating, into Life Before the Jedi and Life After. He wondered who he would be in five cycles, ten. He wouldn't be able to wear his robes forever; it was dangerous enough already. He wasn't even sure why he was still wearing them; Chirrut certainly wouldn't have cared.

Perhaps keeping them on was a shield by now, though. No one who intended anything serious would still have them on. They were the wardrobe of the lost and dissolute. The kind of men who took beggars to bed for coin.

Chirrut was waiting for him when he returned, freshly bathed and wrapped in one of the inn's thin towels. "You're paying to have my robes washed," he said.

Ben nodded. "I appreciate your coming to talk to me. I wasn't sure--"

"No," Chirrut said. "I remember you, when you came to the Temple. And your master. Is he--"

"Gone," Ben said, making sure the door was barred behind him. "Years ago."

Chirrut tipped his chin down, solemn. "He is one with the Force, then."

"Yes." 

"I am sorry."

"Yes, well. So am I. But we have more urgent matters to speak of, now." He sat next to Chirrut on the rickety bed. "You've clearly heard of the...the end of our Order."

"That I have," he said.

"There are...two children. And I don't know how I can protect them without your help."

 

"Why do you think I can help you?" Chirrut asked, once Ben had poured out his heart. "The Sith tore our Temple apart. We could not protect ourselves. And you think we can protect these children? Children of Darth Vader himself?"

"I suppose I hope, more than believe. The children grow older. Anakin has survived, and he is--you know what he has done."

"I know," Chirrut said. "And I have no desire to see his sins visited upon his children." 

When they'd first met, Chirrut had been not much out of his teen years, a laughing, light presence who teased his fellows as much as he attended to his duties. The light was still there, but there was more weight in his manner now, and he thought more carefully before he spoke. "Hiding a person is an easier trick than hiding a temple. If you think Vader does not know--"

"I hope," he said. "But every year I will gamble that hope is enough."

"There are two ways to accomplish what you want," Chirrut said, finally. "The first we can do anywhere, but it's time-consuming--likely months for it to fully take hold. It will leave us significantly weakened, and the children more vulnerable. The second can be done in a matter of hours, as long as we have the right partner."

"What is it you're not telling me about the second method?" He'd never known Chirrut to be concerned with risk. 

"The right partner might not be so easy to find. And the method itself..."

"That matters not," he said. "To keep them safe--I've already risked everything I have. I would do it again, in a heartbeat."

"I believe you would, Obi-Wan Kenobi."

"Ben," he said. "Please. Just Ben."

 

They found Baze Malbus in a cantina on Lothal, half-drunk and looking nothing like the Guardian Ben remembered. Of course, Ben himself no doubt looked nothing like the Padawan who had visited the Temple years ago. They were all harder now. Colder.

"No," Baze said flatly, as Chirrut slid across the table from him, that serene smile still on his face, like he’d walked out of the bar two minutes ago and was looking forward to resuming their conversation.

"I haven't asked," Chirrut said, gently, resting his fingers on the surface of the table.

Baze tipped his head a little to one side. He'd grown his hair out, and it rested in a small ponytail at the back of his neck. "You want me to stick my neck out."

Chirrut smiled more broadly. "Of course."

"You know what I think. The Force--"

"There are two children," Chirrut said, holding up a finger to stop him. "Twins. The Sith will be looking for them."

Baze sighed. "Keep talking."

Chirrut sent Ben to get more ale while he explained. He was still talking when Ben came back with the drinks. Ben passed them over wordlessly and waited.

"This seems like a lot of work to get me back to your bed," Baze said, when he had finished.

"I've done harder work for less reward," Chirrut said fondly. "But I do not think Darth Vader, or the Sith, will stop if they think these children can be found."

"You could seal them from the Force permanently."

"I will not stand for that," Ben said. 

"They're not your tools to wield." Baze's voice was shocked.

"No," Ben agreed. "But the choice should be their own. Neither yours, nor mine, nor the Sith's."

Baze looked at Chirrut. "And why am I the necessary partner?"

"You know why," Chirrut said.

"Tell me anyway."

"Because we need to be back at Jedha, and you can get us there. Because you're the most stubborn man I know, and one of the toughest fighters."

"Not because you missed me?"

"I miss you. But I would not ask you to do this for that alone."

"Of course not," Baze said, and Ben noticed a flicker of emotion in his dark, sharp eyes. "Always wondered what it'd be like to have a Jedi." 

"Well, then, I'm pleased to provide a valuable service?"

"I forgot your sense of humor, Obi-Wan."

"Just Ben now," he said. "Please."

"Of course," Baze said. "Ben."

 

His speedster didn't quite have enough room for three, but neither Baze nor Chirrut seemed to mind. Baze shot Ben an amused glance as they got onboard. "Not a bad ship," he said. 

"I won't be able to keep it much longer, I suspect," he said. "Better to sell it for parts than to have half the universe chasing after it."

"What will you do when this is over?" Chirrut asked.

"Back to Tattooine, I suppose." He walked over to the cockpit and started the engine. "The girl is well protected, but the boy--I don't want to call attention to him. He's on the one planet Vader's least likely to go back to, and there was never a Jedi stronghold there. I should be able to settle there without calling too much attention to myself, especially if I sell the ship elsewhere and pay for a transport."

"A quiet life."

"If I'm lucky," Ben said, wryly. "That's the best we're likely to hope for, though, isn't it?"

"I'd like to make some kind of a splash when I go, I think," Chirrut said. "One last poke in the Empire's eye."

Chirrut couldn't see the look Baze shot him. Ben wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing.

"I'd rather stay alive," Baze said, eventually.

"I've heard immortality is overrated." Chirrut grinned in his direction. "Can you imagine having to listen to us drone on all the time?"

"You have a point there."

When they talked like this, Ben couldn't imagine they'd been apart for any time at all. He envied them their comfort, even as he wondered how they'd been driven to separate in the first place. it didn't seem as simple as Baze's explanation, and it wasn't like Chirrut had explained at all. Ben suspected he'd have to live with a bit of mystery.

No wonder the Jedi had sworn off love. It certainly hadn't led to much but misery. Baze and Chirrut, who'd been twin suns as long as he'd known them, living star systems apart. Luke and Leia, the product of an ill-fated heartbreak, left to grow up alone. And the mistakes Ben himself had made, for friendship, for a foolish notion of brotherhood.

He kept to himself--sulked, really--while Baze and Chirrut bedded down, tending the autopilot that didn't really need tending, checking the navigation for the hundredth time. 

"You'll need to rest too," Baze said, coming up behind him when Ben had thought they'd both fallen asleep.

"I know," he said. "But I didn't mind taking first watch."

Baze said nothing.

"Is Chirrut still sleeping?"

"He is."

"What happened between you?”

"He still believes," Baze said, his eyes glancing back to Chirrut’s bunk. "I don't."

"But the Force is real," Ben said. "It's all around us."

"So is the air," Baze said. "I don't pray to that, either."

"But you haven't sealed yourself off," Ben said.

"I don't seal myself off from air," Baze said, sharply.

"I'm...just going to be better off not asking you about the Force at all, I see."

Baze's smile had a knife edge. "Most likely."

"Are there any other topics of conversation I should avoid?"

Baze put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure there will be." Baze was tall enough that Ben settled right between them in height, which Ben wouldn't think much about normally, but it felt different when they were going to be working together, and more than that if all went according to plan.

Baze must have been thinking along the same lines, because he shot Ben a little, amused smile and leaned down. "I'm sure we'll work something out," he said, close to Ben’s ear, and Ben felt his blood rise.

"I suppose I should rest," he said. "We'll have time enough to work through the details on the way."

Ben had set their course for NaJedha, close enough to scope out Jedha without drawing too much attention. Baze had been working mercenary jobs since the Temple fell, and had found a network of contacts who knew the terrain around the planet well. "We wouldn't be able to mount a full-scale assault, but they don't think anyone will care much about some washed-out Guardians and a drunken Jedi."

"Drunken?" Ben said.

Baze grinned.

 

Ben wondered if Baze and Chirrut had been too generous when they estimated how much he could tolerate. The room wasn't spinning, but it wasn't staying as still as it ought to. Baze put a hand on Ben's back, and Ben needed it more than either of them had originally planned.

Chirrut had reassured him that the alcohol would wear off quickly, and Ben just had to hope they were right.

"Get moving, you fool," Baze said. "That's all the Jedi are these days. Drunks and layabouts. You're not even worth a bounty to the Empire any more."

"Dunno what you're talking about," Ben said, and the herbs he'd chewed to numb his mouth worked entirely too well. He wondered if anyone near him would even understand. "I'm still--still strong. Incredibly strong. Whole--th' whole galaxy should be afraid of me."

"Of course, of course," Baze said. "We'll have to get you right to those Stormtroopers, as soon as you sober up."

They hardly drew a glance. Just as planned. 

"Now we'll just see if that idiot makes it here," Baze said, as they found their rendezvous point; little more than a shack next to a pile of ruins.

"Where are we?"

"This is near where the Temple gates stood," Baze said. "Chirrut can sense it, as clearly as he knows where the crystal is in your saber. This should lend us enough shelter to do what we need to, as long as we can escape the notice of the Empire. But the advantage of their...aggressive campaign toward Force users means we won't call much attention to ourselves."

"Only two Sith," Ben said. "Master and apprentice. And neither of them are concerned with the likes of me, right now."

Baze reached into his pocket and pulled out a packet of dried gnort meat. He offered some to Ben.

"Thank you," Ben said, and took a piece. It wasn't the best food he'd had, but it would keep them going, and would help him sober up a bit more. The wind had come up, and it was rattling the thin wood of the shack. "I don't suppose we'll be able to find a better shelter for what we had in mind--"

"No," he said. "I don't think we will." He sighed. "It's been a very long time since Jedha was what it was supposed to be." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Funny, how quickly you can destroy what took generations to build."

"I suppose so," Ben said, thinking of the Jedi, of his master and his master's master, and the long unbroken line of Jedi that now lay in tatters. "Even what was so solid between you."

"Is that your way of asking what happened?" Baze asked. "I thought I was clear about that."

"No," Ben said. "A reflection, I suppose." 

"It's impossible," Baze said. "I'm never living that way again. He'll never live any other way." He looked back at the door. "He's going to get himself killed."

"Did you really join the Guardians to retire in comfort?"

Baze barked a laugh. "I was the fifth son. I joined the Guardians because we were out of land to farm. But you're right. I wanted--I wanted to do everything we failed at. I failed at."

"We all failed," Ben said. "Now we're left to our small rebellions."

"What will you do, when this is over?"

"Retire, most likely," he said. "Flee to Tatooine, tail between my legs, hoping the Empire won't bother with me, or with the boy."

"Is it safe to be so close to him?"

Ben shrugged. "Is it safe to be far away? At least then, I might be able to protect him."

Baze lifted his brow. "Vanity, Ben Kenobi?"

"Call it confidence. Or foolhardiness. Perhaps a bit of both."

The room was steadier now, his coordination coming back. He lifted his hand, stared at his fingers; they were steady again.

Baze’s voice was distant, when he spoke again. "We sparred once, years ago."

"I remember." They'd fought with staffs, a weapon neither of them were particularly skilled with, and had mostly bruised each other, Chirrut and Qui-Gon cheering and teasing them as they struggled. "A lifetime ago."

"We should do it again sometime." Baze shifted closer, close enough Ben could feel his body heat. Enough that Ben remembered, to his bones, how long he'd been sleeping alone. "I liked you dripping sweat."

"You didn't say at the time."

"We were busy with other matters."

"Do you think he'd want us to practice first?"

"Practice what?" Chirrut said, swinging the flimsy door open and walking through. "If you'd like to kiss, I wouldn't complain.”

"You wouldn't _complain?"_ Baze looked affronted.

Obi-Wan slid an arm around Chirrut's waist. "We may have to switch him out for a different partner, if he's going to talk like that."

"Indeed. I think we'd at least rate a 'please begin as soon as possible.'"

"I'm not ready for the ritual," Chirrut said, walking over and plucking the last strip of gnort out of Baze's hand. "However you choose to occupy yourselves before then isn't really my concern, is it?"

Baze caught the sleeve of his robe. "You're impossible," he said.

Obi-Wan knew that Chirrut couldn't see the affection in his eyes, but he must have heard the softening tone of Baze's voice. His face eased a little. "I missed you too," Chirrut said, and tore off a chunk of meat with his teeth.

"Don't get sentimental on me now," Baze said, but his voice had lost its hostility.

"Go ahead and warm up Obi-Wan, if you'd like," Chirrut said, turning abruptly away. "I'll try not to waste any time."

"Yes," Baze said, the moment lost.

 

"I suppose we should--" Ben waved his gnort.

"We should," Baze agreed, and they ate in silence while Chirrut settled, cross-legged, on the floor and got to work. When they were finished, Baze pulled the blankets they'd packed out of his pack, spreading them over the dusty floor.

Ben watched Chirrut as he began to work with the Force. His hands were awkward, large, with broad fingers that had been broken more than once from training and appeared to have healed to their own idiosyncratic design. 

Ben glanced over at Baze, who was watching, transfixed. "Have you ever seen him--"

Baze shook his head no. "It wasn't a skill we called on often at the Temple. The old priests had put most of the protections in place centuries before; our job was just to ensure that they held."

"Shh," Chirrut chided.

Baze fell silent. He reached over and took Ben's hand, his thumb finding the calluses from the saber, stroking them thoughtfully. Ben hadn't been the only one thinking about their differences. "You still practice," Baze said. 

"Yes," Ben said. "I hope you don't expect me to apologize."

"No," Baze said. "I stopped believing in the Force, but no one would think a Jedi would leave his saber behind."

He smiled, gently. "I guess you're right. Though I'm not sure that I'm not still an idiot. And I might never be a Jedi again."

"You're who you are," he said. "That's enough for any man."

 _You miss him,_ Ben wanted to say, but perhaps it didn't need to be said at all. 

"Maybe we should have practiced first," Baze mused. "A dry run or two--but I suppose it’s too late for that.” He pulled Ben closer.

Baze kissed like he fought, determined, laser-focused, strong. His hands gripped Ben's arms, pulled him closer, pressed in with hunger.

A few things hit Ben at once: that Chirrut had stopped chanting, that Baze was even stronger than he looked, that the kiss wasn't just to irritate Chirrut or start this meditation. There was desire there, strong. Hot.

Ben focused on the last point. It had been so long since he'd felt _wanted,_ had felt the searing heat of desire, and felt it returned. Baze's back was muscular under his bulky gear, and Ben started working on the layers.

"How can you wear so much?"

"You get used to it," Baze said. "Besides, this way it's more of a challenge for you."

Ben snorted, and loosed another buckle. 

He ran his fingers across Ben's ribs affectionately.

"You have to bring him closer," Chirrut said, rising.

"Blankets are here," Baze said, and Ben heard Chirrut's sigh of agreement.

Ben felt Baze's warmth, the heat of his body, and pulled him closer in reply.

"You are persuasive," Chirrut sighed, and Ben felt him diving down into the Force, leaving them both only to resurface stronger, wrapping the Force around them all.

Ben had never felt the Force like this, warm and welcoming and sensual. For a wild, dark second he wondered what Master Yoda would have thought of this; wondered if Master Qui-Gonn had been familiar with the sensation coursing through Ben. He certainly would've laughed at how seriously Ben was taking all this. _You must trust in the Force,_ his voice echoed now, in Ben's mind. _You always did overthink things._

At some point, Chirrut had risen, and now he stood behind Ben, one hand on Ben's hip, one reaching forward to pull Baze closer. "I think we can safely say we've begun," he said, a sweet note of amusement in his voice. 

"It took long enough," Baze grumbled, as Baze took Ben's tunic in his hands, to pull over his head.

"Things worth doing take time," Chirrut said. "Don't you think this is worth doing?"

Baze shifted his weight, kissing Ben's neck before moving his face close to Chirrut's. "Careful," he said, almost a whisper against Chirrut's ear. "You might admit you miss me."

"I've never stopped," Chirrut said, and Ben felt Baze's body react to that, and he was in the center of a storm, dark and wild and powerful. 

Baze's breath hitched for a moment, and then caught Ben around the waist, pushed him down so his back was on the floor. Chirrut, working in tandem, braced his weight and helped lower him down, so he was half-resting on Chirrut's knees. Baze pushed his leg between Ben's, shoving Ben's thighs apart. "Is this what you had in mind?"

"It's a start," Chirrut said, his voice warm, heated. "Kenobi, is this--"

"It's good," Ben said, because all he wanted to do was lose himself now. All he needed to do. Perhaps he could let the rest of it fade away, focus only on these men, on the Force flowing between them. Chirrut's calm and Baze's passion washed against him in waves, sending warmth through him from his core to his skin. 

"He's hard," Baze said.

"I'm not sure what else you were expecting."

"Jedi are full of surprises," Baze said, his hand stroking along Ben's thigh. "I'm just pleased this is a pleasant one."

He was aching now, but some unspoken rule told him not to move, not rut against the layers of fabric keeping his cock trapped.

"Very good," Chirrut murmured by his ear, and Ben wanted to snap that he was a decade older, but he knew they had the advantage of him in experience. And they knew each other so well. Baze knew just how to pass his palm over Chirrut's scalp so that Chirrut would lean into the touch, close his eyes with the pleasure of it.

"Should we get the last of it off?" Baze asked, his hands on either side of Ben's waistband.

"Your mouth would suit him well, I think," Chirrut said, nodding.

Baze laughed. "I think you're right," he said, and pulled Ben's trousers off, taking extra care not to snap the waistband against his straining erection. "Oh, he's lovely, Chirrut. His skin's like milkstone."

"I can feel," Chirrut said. His cock had shifted slightly and was now resting between Ben's buttocks. "You should have told us how new this was to you."

"It's not so new," Ben protested. The act itself certainly wasn't. The disconcerting part was the affection, the intimacy. Chirrut's hands resting just over Ben's ribs. "You're just--"

"We are skilled," Baze conceded, and put his mouth--

By the _Force._

"Ah," Chirrut said, at Ben's strained moan. "That's more like it." Ben felt Chirrut's skin, warm on his own.

Ben tipped his chin back, trying to stop himself from thrusting into Baze's mouth. When was the last time--

He couldn't remember. It didn’t matter. "Should--should I tell you? What he looks like?"

"I think I'd like to see him through your eyes," Chirrut said.

"His hair's so dark," Ben said. "Like the black of space. It's almost all I can see when he's like this."

"He is handsome, though," Chirrut said. "I have that on good authority."

"He is. His ears do stick out a bit, that's probably why he's wearing his hair long these days."

Baze slapped Ben's thigh, not hard, but deliberate, sending a tiny wave of pleasure through his body. Ben had never thought he'd like anything like that, but his body was telling him that he liked it very much, and might want another.

"Mmm," Chirrut said. "That's good, isn't it? He's as good with his hands as he is with his mouth. And like this he won’t talk so much."

Baze pulled off, and Ben cried out with frustration. "You two need to behave," he said.

"What about you?" Chirrut challenged. "Look what you're doing to our poor friend."

Baze smiled. "Aren't I supposed to be having an effect?"

"Take the last of your clothes off," Chirrut said, "let him touch you."

Baze leaned over Ben's body, kissed first Ben, then Chirrut, soft, almost reverent, and Ben felt the last of their tension collapsing. You couldn't hide the truth from the Force, even if you were as stubborn as a Guardian. Ben could feel Chirrut working with the power of the Force, binding them together still more closely. "Did you always make love like this?" Ben asked.

"No," Chirrut chuckled, as Baze leaned back and pulled the last of his clothes off. "Too much work."

"We normally found sufficient pleasures on our own," Baze said, his hand stroking down Ben's hip as Ben shuddered again. 

"I believe it," he said, and surged up to kiss Baze, his free hand stroking Baze's chin, the rough hair of his goatee. "You've shown no small skill, and we've hardly begun."

"He'll get a swelled head if you keep talking like that," Chirrut said.

"I'm fine with a certain amount of swelling," Ben said, and Chirrut laughed.

"Such cheek," Baze said, and started kissing his way back down Ben's chest. "Ah, he's better than we'd ever thought, Chirrut."

"You thought about this?"

"Once or twice," Chirrut admitted. 

His hand tweaked one of Ben's nipples, "You're too good to me," Ben said, writhing back. "I'll take too much pleasure, and not enough focus."

"You don't have to work so hard for this," Chirrut said. "Trust in me, and in the Force."

"Should I keep him occupied again?" Baze asked.

"I'd like that," Chirrut said, and Ben heard him laugh as Baze kissed his stomach, bit gently at his navel. Baze moaned as Ben caught his hand in Baze's hair, pulled gently, but hard enough to get attention. "Ah--he likes that, too."

"Don't speak for me," Baze said, into Ben's abdomen, but his voice had lost its calm. 

"I'll do more than that later," Chirrut said, with heat, and Baze closed his eyes, reverent. 

Another reminder that Ben was a stranger, that he wasn't part of this life, this world.

"I'm losing you," Chirrut said, squeezing one of his cheeks. "Don't fight this or you won't get what you want. I need you to flow with the Force, not resist."

"Easy for you to say," Ben grumbled. After all, now their hesitation had fallen, Baze and Chirrut flowed together as easily as water. He was oil on the surface, a near stranger.

But even as the thoughts crossed his mind, he realized the lie. They had a decade or more of history, but that also meant years of argument, years of conflict. The pain of losing the Temple.

Pain had brought them all together, hadn't it?

Baze had moved up again to press his lips against Ben's jaw, his hands resting on Ben's hips. Chirrut's fingers covered Ben's, so they tangled into Baze's hair together.

"Ben," Chirrut said, and Ben felt the warm slide of Chirrut’s cock at his ass, sliding between his cheeks. "You're with us. It's safe." 

As safe as anything could be. As safe as he would ever be again. Likely safer, truth be known.

The Force wound between them, pulling them together, and Ben felt their pain, losing the Temple and the each other, Chirrut's iron faith hitting the wall of Baze's anger and betrayal.

And that was how things had severed. Two halves of a whole, living a new life, individual, alone. Longing for one another desperately, but unable to admit it, unwilling to compromise.

But here, stripped of posturing and pride, was their joy at being reunited, the pleasure they took in each other. At the feeling of Chirrut's fingers in Baze's hair, of the familiar strength in Chirrut's back and shoulders. Of the way they moved together.

At having Ben with them, between them, lithe and as eager as they, and as welcome. 

"Enough," Baze said, and took Ben in hand.

Ben gasped, thrust his hips forward, and Chirrut's length slid away, too far away, leaving Ben to slide back again, seeking sensation, seeking _more._

"Very nice," Chirrut said, soft, appreciative.

"You're beautiful," Baze said. "Tip your head up, a little more?"

Ben obeyed, and Baze kissed a line down his jaw, sucked gently at the hollow of Ben's neck. He found the back of Baze's neck, stroked down Baze's spine with his fingers. It felt greedy, wanting to be part of this, wanting to feel every inch of them both. But they were just as greedy.

His hand tweaked one of Ben's nipples, "You're too good to me," Ben said, writhing back. "I'll take too much pleasure, and not enough focus."

"You don't have to work so hard for this," Chirrut said. "Trust in me, and in the Force."

"Should I keep him occupied again?" Baze asked.

"I'd like that," Chirrut said, and Ben heard him laugh as Baze kissed his stomach, bit gently at his navel. Baze moaned as Ben caught his hand in Baze's hair, pulled gently, but hard enough to get attention. "Ah--he likes that, too."

"Don't speak for me," Baze said, into Ben's abdomen, but his voice had lost its calm. 

"I'll do more than that later," Chirrut said, with heat, and Baze closed his eyes, reverent. 

Another reminder that Ben was a stranger, that he wasn't part of this life, this world.

"I'm losing you," Chirrut said, squeezing one of his cheeks. 

Baze had moved up again to press his lips against Ben's jaw, his hands resting on Ben's hips. Chirrut's fingers covered Ben's, so they tangled into Baze's hair together.

Baze kissed Chirrut over Ben's shoulder as he shifted position and slid their cocks together; Ben felt Chirrut moaning underneath him when he broke the kiss, his head tipping back, his fingers stroking his hips and Baze's in turn. 

"He's too quiet," Chirrut said. "You're not working hard enough."

"I'm afraid I've never been too loud during these pursuits."

"That sounds like a challenge," Chirrut said, and Baze chuckled, shifting his hips again, his hand working faster, his grip tighter. 

"Oh," Ben said, and Chirrut chuckled, softly, into Ben's neck, sliding his cock deeper between Ben's cheeks, enough to make Ben want more, push back into Chirrut's body. "You're both--"

"We certainly are," Chirrut said.

Ben wanted to laugh, but it came out as another moan, raw and needy. 

"Don't stop," Baze said, sounding breathless, finally. "Another time I'd have you on your knees, have your mouth--"

"By the _Force,"_ Ben said, hearing his own voice sound distant, lost. "I'd let you--want you to. Please don't stop--"

"No," Chirrut said, and pushed again, and Ben was caught between them as the Force worked its will, pulling them all closer, pressing against Ben's skin. "I don't think I will."

The Force was there, between them, taking as much as it gave, but the taking was such pleasure. Baze, for all his cynicism, hummed with it, and Ben could feel Chirrut continuing to work with its power, wrapping it tighter and tighter around them, strengthening the bond he'd created.

When he came, the Force shimmered through them, and he felt Baze's spend joining his own, spattering against his stomach, Chirrut's cock pulsing against his skin.

"It's done," Chirrut said, but Ben already knew, had already _felt_ the shift in the Force. His body felt weak, but in a good way, the way it felt from exertion, not the bone-heavy exhaustion he had felt too often. Baze's free hand rested on his waist, solid and comforting.

"Are you all right?" Chirrut asked.

"Yes," Ben said. He was. He felt more content than he had since the first time he'd sensed the Dark Side in a man he'd thought of as his dearest friend. He would have liked to pretend that it was because he knew the children were protected, but he suspected it was more that he'd finally gotten out of his own head and beyond his own guilt and recriminations, if only for a few ecstatic moments. 

"You could stay with us," Baze said. "I don't want you to think that--"

"No," he said. "I don't think--I've felt welcome, and I'm grateful. But this isn't where I belong."

"I'm not sure any of us are where we belong," Baze said.

"We belong here, in this moment," Chirrut said. "What will happen next isn't for us to decide."

"You're too philosophical." Baze stroked the back of Chirrut's head, fondly. "But it's good, being back here. I thought it would hurt. It does, but it's also--"

Chirrut leaned a little into the touch, his expression dreamy and fond. "It's home."

"Yes," Baze said. "Mercenaries can live anywhere, or so I'm told."

"I've heard the same of beggars."

"It's busier here than Tattooine, certainly."

Chirrut shifted against him, put his arms against Ben's waist. "You really could--"

"I know," Ben said. "Don't think I don't appreciate the offer." But he still had debts to pay. Promises he was obligated to keep.

Baze bit gently at his ear. "Well, you don't have to rush back."

"I suppose I don't," Ben said, softly, and tipped his head back so Baze could kiss him again.

"I know it sounds odd, but--I am glad to see you both again. Even like this. At the end of...so much."

"Without endings, we'd never have new beginnings," Chirrut said, and Ben and Baze both sighed at that. 

"We shouldn't stay here," Chirrut said, sitting up. "We won't be able to remain undetected here forever."

"I know," Baze said. His fingers caught Chirrut's, pressing affectionately against Ben as he did. "I suppose we should dress.”

Ben reached for his underwear. "We can probably take a night or two in the speedster, if you don't mind close quarters."

"I think we'll be all right," Chirrut said. "I've made do with less. We both have."

"We will again, if we stay on Jedha."

"Likely," Chirrut said, and handed Ben his pants. "Has anyone seen my shirt?"

Baze pressed it into Chirrut's hands. "We'd better clear out quickly. I doubt anyone will notice what we've done, but I don't have much interest in taking chances."

"That makes three of us," Ben said, getting up and grabbing his remaining clothes. "Should we split up again?"

"Probably," Baze said. "I've no interest in explaining myself to the Empire. Chirrut, would you--"

"I'll come with you," Chirrut said, finding his pants himself. "You won't mind catching us up, will you, Ben?"

"Of course not," he said. "I should take a bit longer to 'sleep it off' anyway, shouldn't I?"

Chirrut chuckled. "Probably. We'll see you at the ship." He offered a hand to Baze, who pulled himself up. 

_You two have plenty to talk about,_ Ben thought, as they left. He cleaned himself off and watched the sunset though the wrecked window. 

A day, maybe two, before he went back to Tattooine and exile, while he left his friends to their own fates here on Jedha. Whatever those fates might be.

But Luke and Leia would be safe, at least as safe as any force could render them. His friends were reunited. And a few nights of companionship would bring some warmth in the Jundland Wastes.

It wasn't everything, but it was a balm, nonetheless.

**Author's Note:**

> I basically took all my Star Wars canon from the movies, only grabbing a few things from Wookiepedia if I needed something to fill in.
> 
> The Force technique is an extrapolation I stole from [Rian Johnson.](https://twitter.com/rianjohnson/status/954398403986731008)
> 
> The title is snagged from Troye Sivan's "My My My." 
> 
> Thank you to my beta! Remaining errors are mine.


End file.
